“Mozart’s piano sonatas abound with emotional expressivity juxtaposed against the utmost demand for virtuosic precision. Perfectly honed compositions with not a note missing or misplaced, they are capable of a kind of musical clarity that speaks to my inherent sensibilities and informs my approach to all other kinds of music. “Mozart KLAR is an album celebrating this clarity in that most fundamental of musical places, C Major, represented so clearly by the white keys of the piano. Even with such a seemingly limited palette of colors, and all the brighter perhaps for coming from it, the four sonatas in C Major abound with joy, longing, sadness, and peace. “The sonatas were recorded in continuous, unedited takes in two-hour sessions on July 21 and 22, 2014, on a Hamburg Steinway D in the beautiful Sol Joseph Recital Hall at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. I am extremely familiar with both the piano and the hall, having worked as a staff accompanist for the Conservatory’s Preparatory and Adult Extension divisions over the last five years. Both the intimacy of the hall and the concentration of the sessions reflect my intention to capture these sonatas with the directness and spontaneity of a live performance.” -- Paul G. McCurdy Paul G. McCurdy works as a pianist, choral teacher, and coach with a wide range of organizations, including the Lesbian/Gay Chorus of San Francisco, Lick-Wilmerding High School, Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory, the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, the San Francisco Girls Chorus, Lamplighters Music Theatre, and Woodminster Summer Musicals. He performs in recital regularly with vocalists and instrumentalists and in 2013 recorded Silences Between, a CD of music for flute and piano featuring Monica Williams. He studied music at the University of Georgia and holds degrees in anthropology and German.